’Twas a rough road for Cebu gov in 2003

CEBU — 2003 was a rough road for Gov. Pablo Garcia, made tougher by his political critics and the opposition.

But the 78-year-old governor, going into the final stage of his third and last term, boasted that his administration survived legal and political hurdles last year.

"In spite of politics, we were able to accomplish projects," he said. He went on to enumerate some of them.

On top of his list is the P60-million legislative building which will house the offices of the provincial board members and the session hall.

Next in line is the construction of the P50-million Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center in Barangay Kalunasan, a state-of-the-art prison facility that will be equipped with an automatic door locking system and surveillance cameras.

Garcia also refuted the claims of his detractors that he failed to implement road projects in 2003.

He said the provincial government is currently working on P25-million road concreting projects in Bantayan and Madridejos towns, and another P20-million road projects in San Francisco and Poro towns on Camotes Island.

Garcia said the provincial engineering task forces have been working on the asphalting of several roads in the different districts.

He added a counterpart fund of P7 million has been allotted for each of the 10 steel bridges to be built in the towns of Carcar, Balamban, Barili, Tabogon and Argao under President Arroyo’s bridge program.

Among the completed projects, he said, are farm-to-market roads and the "vegetable highway" connecting Mantalongon, Dalaguete and Carcar towns, and the agricultural college in Barili town.

Garcia said he is currently finishing the Sugbo Cultural Center, a project left unfinished by former governor Vicente de la Cerna, at the University of the Philippines in Lahug.

Those were a slew of grandiose projects but his political rivals apparently refused to acknowledge them and were even open in blocking his supposedly biggest project — the P250-million megadome. — Freeman News Service